Hurting
by LindsayHalstead
Summary: What happens when Christa hurts her ankle one morning on her way to work?


She limped into the ER of Angels Memorial. She barely could walk. On her way to her shift today she twisted her ankle. Hearing a big plop. She then had to sit down for a while.

Passing pedestrians asking if she needed help. She declined saying she already was on her way to the hospital.

After ten minutes she stood up again. Standing on her injured foot hurt but she was fine to walk. Limping towards the hospital she decided to ignore the pain and not tell the others.

Arriving just on time she changed herself into scrubs and walked back into the ER already seeing Dr. Rorish.

They already got someone onto center stage. She stopped right besides Leanne's side already acting in reading the vitals.

She enjoyed working with Leanne even if she missed working with Neal. But for now, it was better that he was more in the OR. After Grace came back she somewhat broke-up with him. But nothing official.

The disclosure form which they signed was still at HR no one down in the ER knowing about them, besides Grace and 'Daddy'. But she was sure 'Mamma' was sensing something. Nevertheless, they had work to do.

After stabilizing the patient, she left center stage. She had to care for other patients.

"Another incoming," Leanne said, and they were walking outside. Having to hold onto the stretcher they had to walk in fast. With adrenaline pumping through her veins she didn't really feel any pain.

With teaching from Grace, they worked on the patient. Putting a tube down his throat they stabilized him enough for the way up to surgery.

"Everything okay?" Grace asked her with a glance down to her foot. Grace could see her limping.

"Yeah, I am fine." She lied with a set-up smile. Grace didn't really have time to ask further after one of her patients started seizing.

The pain in Christa's foot got more and more intense. Walking got more and more impossible.

Before lunch, with Malaya, she was walking beside the center stage as the pain became unbearable and she fell to the floor.

"Christa!" Malaya, who was walking right beside her, yelled. She instantly dropped to her knees.

"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly. "My…my ankle." She managed to say while tears streamed down her face.

"Can you walk?" Malaya asked in return. Patients were staring, and a small group of nurses pooled around them. Christa only shook her head declining.

"Mama, I need a bed for her!" Malaya said to Jesse who just arrived. Wanting to know what was going on. Not even a minute later two nurses came back with a bed and together with Jesses and Malaya's help Christa managed to get on the bed. Now they were in Code green, so they quickly wheeled her onto center stage. To free the place. Jesse already paging Leanne. She arrived mere seconds later.

"Christa?" she asked worriedly. Also wanting an explanation.

"I twisted my ankle this morning. Though it was fine until I couldn't walk anymore." Christa explained much calmer now.

"I'll have to take a look at it and I can't promise that it won't hurt more than it already does." She said while freeing her ankle from her shoes and socks. Slightly tilting the side Christa winced in pain and Leanne seeing the bruise.

"Christa, it looks like you ripped your ligaments. We will have to do an x-ray to look for any bone splints." She explained.

Ten minutes later both Leanne and Jesse wheeled her to the x-ray room. "Should anyone page Neal?" Jesse asked as it only were the three of them.

"No, please don't!" she answered. Both Leanne and Jesse wanting an explanation.

"After Grace came back I kind of broke it off." She said ruefully. Already regretting it.

It was now time for the x-ray which was quite painful because she had to turn her ankle. After ten minutes of x-raying and waiting for the picture, she was now on a side bed of the ER. Her ankle getting cooled.

"Good news and bad news," Leanne said as she stopped at the side of the bed with a red folder in her hand. Her folder.

"Just tell me, please," Christa said tiredly. The medication she got tiring her out.

"Good news, it is slightly ripped and not completely ripped. Unfortunately, you can see here a bone fragment which we have to remove surgically." She said showing Christa her x-rays.

"When will the surgery be?"

"When you didn't eat anything, you'll be the next on the list, unless a more urgent case comes in," Leanne said, and Christa nodded. She didn't really have time for surgery and she couldn't decide if she wanted to see Neal or not.

"Okay, I guess I'll have to wait here?" Christa asked. She didn't want to just lie there doing anything.

"I'm sorry Christa," Leanne said and had to leave. In the end, she had to wait three more hours. Which she spent contemplating the whole drama with Neal.

When shift ended, and she went home she missed him terribly. She also missed working with him and just spending time with him. But she didn't want to let her heart be broken again. She knew Neal would never cheat but with Grace here and Neal bottling up his feelings she didn't know what to feel nor how to act.

She so badly wanted to talk but back then she needed time and then her words sounded so final.

"Come on Angelique. It's now your turn." Jesse said as he loosened the breaks of the bed. With Malaya and Jesse, they started to leave the ER. But not without goodbyes and good lucks from Angus, Mario, Mike, Leanne and surprisingly from Grace too. They knew all that an easy surgery sometimes doesn't end well.

She was moved into the OR right away and after saying goodbye to booth Jesse and Malaya she was put under anesthetics by nurses.

Campbell was the one doing the surgery. He still didn't really trust Neal and sent him to do the post-surgical visits.

He did an Arthroscopic bone fragment removal. Which was the easiest and would have the easiest and fastest healing time.

After ten minutes into the surgery, he got called to an emergency downstairs and he had to page Neal.

"You know how to do an Arthroscopic bone fragment removal?" he asked as soon as Neal had scrubbed in.

"I know, you can go downstairs!" Neal said taking Campbell's place. All he knew was what he had to do. Not what happened, not who it was.

It would be better. He still missed Christa. He could kick his ass every damn day he wasn't able to hold her, to kiss her. Losing Grace, the year before broke his heart but losing Christa after such a short time was so much worse.

He didn't know how he fell so hard and fast. But he did and all he wanted, was having her back. He already missed sleeping beside her and missed waking up beside her. With her, it was special and uncomplicated.

Uncomplicated my ass. He sometimes thought.

After removing the splint, he took the drive out and closed up. Leaving the room, he scrubbed out while the nurses took away the patient. He just caught a glimpse of blonde hair under the protective gear for the OR.

Scrubbing out he again thought about Christa and decided it was now or never. Getting into the elevator he thought about how to tell her. Deciding to just go with the bolt truth he opened the ER doors.

Entering the ER he already saw Angus treating a patient with Mario. Walking towards center stage he just saw Campbell leaving with a patient.

"Campbell. Surgery is finished, and patient is stable and in recovery." He said while the Surgeon passed. After a nod he was again standing there searching for Christa. Maybe she was doing a CT. He thought.

"Hey, Leanne! You know where Christa is?" He asked her. Hopeful to get an answer he likes. But he didn't get an answer he liked.

"Upstairs, you just finished surgery on her." She answered, and he stopped dead in his tracks. He did what?

"What happened? When did this happen?" he asked even more worried than before. How could he not notice?

"She twisted her ankle this morning and around lunchtime she couldn't even walk. X-ray showed slightly ripped ligaments with a bone splint." She explained. The next patient already coming in.

"Thank you, but I have to go upstairs now." He excused himself and got back upstairs onto the surgical floor. Unfortunately, his shift wouldn't end for another three hours.

He doesn't really know how he managed to work these three hours but now he found himself in Christa's room sitting on an uncomfortable hospital chair beside her bed holding her hand.

The narcotics should wear off soon, so he lied his head on the bed trying to catch some sleep before she wakes up. He already knew she would say something like "You shouldn't be here." And then he would reply with "There's no other place I would rather be."

Christa slowly woke up as she felt something lightly squeezing her hand. She opened her eyes and saw a body slouched in a chair lying head on her bed. She had a guess who it would be, and her heart was filled with warmth. Turning her head, she saw it was Neal for sure. Squeezing her hand in his she started to lightly stroke his hair with her other hand. It was an uncomfortable position, but it didn't matter to her. She concentrated on Neal sleeping and was brought back into reality as someone knocked on the glass door.

It was Campbell ho entered the room soon after for the routine check-up.

"He's sleeping." She whispered as he stood near the bed and had a clear sight on Neal.

"I'll make it quick." He said while checking her vitals and her leg then. Writing some things down on the chart he looked back at Neal and then Christa.

"Do you want me to move your leg, so he can lie beside you?" he kindly whispered and she nodded.

Carefully he lifted her leg and moved the cushion to the left. Setting the leg back down there was enough space then for Neal.

"Thank you!" she quietly said. Campbell took her chart and left with a "Get better!"

There for sure was a soft side. Just like she saw him using it on Rosaline.

After another half hour, she felt him stir. She let him slowly waking up while still stroking his hairs. It was calming to her.

"Hey Christa!" he beamed as he sat up. His back hurting.

"Hi, how are you feeling?" she asked him, and he had to chuckle.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" he asked, and she smiled. Patting the free side on her bed she asked him to join her. "Come on, there's space for you!" and he stood up. Stretching a little bit, he looked at her vitals.

"Campbell already came by. I am alright!" she said taking his hand. He really wanted to lie down with her, but they had to talk first so for now he just sat down.

"We have to talk Christa!" he said quite seriously.

"I know Neal…" she said and before he even could continue she said, "I'm sorry."

"Why? When someone has to say I'm sorry it should be me." was the only way he could answer.

"Because I gave up to early. Because I didn't fight harder for you, for us and because I regret it ever since!" she said her voice full of guilt. Now it was Neal's part to even fell guiltier.

"No, Christa! I am sorry! I should have told you the first time you asked, and I should have talked to you more! I never wanted this to happen because you mean so much!" he said teary-eyed. One hand touching her cheek.

"I forgive you!" she said and with a kiss on her forehead, he lied beside her.

With her leg propped up like this, they couldn't really cuddle. So, they had to be happy with him lying beside her with an arm around her stomach his face facing her.

Shortly before both fell asleep again you could hear him quietly say

"I love you, Christa Lorenson!"


End file.
